US Olympic marathoner Molly Seidel stunned the running world on Friday, winning a bronze medal in her third attempt at the marathon.
Seidel, 27, became the first American female marathoner to win a medal since Deena Kastor won bronze at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece.
Seidel, a collegiate cross-country champion, battled the heat and humidity to wrap up with some of the world’s best women’s marathoners, including Kenyan runner Perez Jepchirchir, who won the race to earn gold, and women’s marathon world-record holder, Brigid Kosgei. doing. who took the silver
The Wisconsin native, who was not expected to reach the podium at the Olympics, managed to keep up with the top runners as the lead pack went down to three in the closing few miles of the race.
Officials last year decided to move the marathon to Sapporo, Japan, about 500 miles north of Tokyo, where the rest of the Olympic action is taking place with hopes of cooler temperatures. it did not work. Seidel and other runners struggled with 86 percent humidity and road temperatures above 100 degrees.
Seidel earned his ticket to Japan in his first marathon at the US Olympic Trials in Atlanta in February 2020.
